Piano attachment



' May 6, 1924. 1,493,056

G. F. USBECK PIANO ATTACHMENT Filed Sept. 16. 1921 awwenboz George F (/sbeak Patented May 6, 1924.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE I. USBECK, 0'! NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HAL}? TO EUGENE J. 'BADLE, OF PINELAWN, LONG ISLAND, NEW YORK.

PIANO 'ATTACHMENT.

Application filed September 16, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

7 Be it known that I, GEORGE F. USBEGK, a citizen .of the United States, and residing at New York, in the county of 'New York and State of New York, have invented certain new'and useful Improvements in Piano Attachments, of which the following is a specification, such as will enable those skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention'relates to attachments for use in connection with pianos, player pianos, orchestrions, organs and similar apparatus, and the object of the invention isto provide an attachment for apparatus of this class in the form of a shelf which may be readily attached to and detached from apparatus of the class specified, and which is so constructed that the shelf member proper thereof may be extended and serve to support music rolls, sheet music and like articles and which may be moved into unserviceable position and retained in such position; a further object being to mount the attachment in connection with an apparatus in such manner as to be of no inconvenience .to the operator andto provide a convenient storage or support. for music rolls, sheet music and the like to be used by the operator in playing a iano, player piano or other instrument 0% this class, and said attachment being so constructed and mounted that music rolls or their containersmay be supported in an upwardly inclined position in said attachment, and with these and other objects in view the invention consists in an attachment of the class and for the purpose specified which is simple in construction and efficient inuse, and which is constructed as hereinafter described and claimed.

The invention is fully disclosed in the following specification, of which the accompanying drawing forms a part, in which the separate parts of my improvement are designated by suitable reference characters in each of the views, and in which Fig. 1 is a front view of a part of a player piano showing my improved attachment mounted in connection therewith and indicating the method of its use;

7 Fig. 2 a partialsection ,on the line 22 of F1g.- 1;

Fig.j3 adetail side view of a corner portion ofjthe attachment on an enlarged scale; and,

Serial vHo. 501,115.

Fig. 4 a view looking in the direction of the arrow 00 of Fig. 3.

In Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawing I have shown one side portion of a player piano 5, the bottom portion of the keyboard being indicated at 6, and one of the legs thereof at 7, and the back wall beneath the keyboard being shown at 8, and thisxback wall is usually removable and provided at the top thereof with a longitudinal space 9 between said back wall and the bottom of the keyboard 6. I

My improved attachment is in the form of a shelf construction 10 and comprises a back board member 11 tothe bottom of which is hinged a shelf board member 12 as shown at 13 in Fig. 2. Secured to the top portion of the, back member 11 inwardly of the sides thereof are two hook-shaped de vices 14 which are adapted to be passed over the top of the back wall 8 of theplayer piano as clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2 when the back wall 8 is removed or the top portion thereof swung outwardly to support the shelf construction 10 in connection with said back wall, and beneath the keyboard 6. The

back member 11 of the shelf construction,

or the front and back faces thereof are covered with suitable fibrous material 15, preferably felt as shown in Fig. 2 of the drawing, and the top face of the shelf member 12 as well as the front edge portion thereof is correspondingly covered with fibrous material 16, preferably felt.

I also employ two chains, or the like 17 which are secured to the top side portions of the back member 11, as shown at 18 and to the side portions of the shelf member 12 as shown at 19, and these chains serve to reinforce the shelf construction and to relieve the strain on the shelf member 12 when in use.

It will be noted that the shelf member 12 of the shelf construction when moved into operative position is inclined forwardly and upwardly so that when music rolls or the containers 20 thereof are placed on the shelf member 12, one end portion of said music rolls or the containers thereof are clearly visible to the operator of the player piano and willfacilitate the election of the selection to be played.

I also provide the corner portion of the shelf construction with supplemental hinge devices 21, one of which is shown indetail in Figs. 3 and 4 of the drawing, and these devicescomprise' separate members 22 and 23 which are secured to the back member 11 and shelf member 12 respectively, and the members "22 and 23 are provided with circular heads 24 and 25 riveted together centrally thereof as shown at 26, and the head 24: of the member 22 is provided with two depressions 27 and 28 ,the depression 27 being adapted to cooperate with similar depressions29 and 30in the head 25 of the member 23, while the depression 28 operates in connection with a cut-out portion 31 in the head 25.

The depression 28 serves to limit the movement of the shelf member 12 in both directions, or from the position shown in full lines in Fig. 2to that indicated in dotted lines in said figure, while the depression 27 cooperates with the depressions 29 and 30 touhold. said shelf member under tension in both its operative and inoperative position.

The device 21. is of well-known construction and in itself forms no part of the invention and is merely shown to illustrate one method of tensionally supporting the shelfmember in its different positions when in use. i c a It will be understood that the shelfmember 12 will norma-lly assume the position indicated in dotted lines in Fig. 2, and when it is desired to use the shelf construction or to support'music roll containers or the like thereon, the shelf member 12 is grasped by the handzand moved outwardly, in which operation the depression 29 moves out of engagement withthe depression 27 and the depression 30 will engage said depression 27 to retain the shelf member inapredetermined position. i g

It will be, apparent thatmy improved attachment or shelf construction is totally independent of the player piano or other musical instrument or apparatus in connection with which itis employed, and is mounted or supported in connection therewith without the use of screws, bolts and the like, and while I- have shown and described a specific use ofmy improved attachment, it

'will'be understood that I am not necessarily limited to this use and various other changes in and modifications of the construction herein shown and described may be made,

within the scope of the appended claims,

without departing from the spirit of my invention, or sacrificing its advantages.

like apparatus for supporting music rolls,

containers or the like in connection therewith, said attachment comprising a back member and a shelf member, means for supporting said back member in connection with meaose the apparatus, hinges for movably connecting the shelf member' with said back member, and means on said hinges for frictionally retaining said shelf member in a raised position and for positively holding said shelf member inanother a lowered position.

2. An attachment for player pianos and like apparatus for supporting music rolls, containers or the like in connection therewith, said attachment comprising a back member and a shelf member, means for supporting said back member in connection with the apparatus, hinged for movably connecting the shelf member with said back member, means on said hinges for frictionally retaining said shelf member in a raised position and for positively holding said shelf member in another a lowered position, and chains mounted in connection with said back member and said shelf member for reinforcing and aiding in the support of said shelf member in one position-thereof.

3(An attachment for player pianos for supporting music rolls, containers and the like in connection therewith, said attachment comprising a back board member,

means for supporting said member in connection with said player piano, a shelf board member movably connected with the back board, member, means for supporting said shelf board member in serviceable and inaccessible positions, said shelf board member being inclined forwardly and upwardly when in its operative position, and both of said members being provided with vfibrous facings.

4. A shelfconstruction for use in connection with player pianos, said shelf construction being adapted to be mounted beneath the keyboard of the piano at one side thereof and comprising a back board member, hook devices for suspending the backboard member in connection with the piano, a shelf board member hinged tothe lower end portion of the back board member and adapted to be moved into raised and lowered positions, means for retaining said shelfboard member in both positions, and chains secured to the top side portions ofthe back board member and with said shelf board member to aid in supportingsaid shelf board member in a lowered position. v

5. A shelf construction for use in connection with player pianos, said shelf construction being adapted to be mounted beneath the keyboard of the piano at one side thereof and comprising-a back board'member, hook devices for suspending the back board member in connection with the piano, ash elf board member hinged to the lower, end portion of the back board member and adapted to be moved into raised and loweredpositions, means for retaining said shelf board member in both positions, chains secured to the top side'portions of the back board member and with said shelf board member to aid in supporting said shelf board member in a lowered position, and said members being provided with fibrous facings.

6. An attachment for player pianos and like apparatus for supporting music rolls and the like in connection therewith, said attachment being composed of two elongated and substantially rectangular members, one of which is of greater depth than the other and constituting a shelf member, means for connecting said members Where they abut to permit of the movement of one of said members relatively to the other and for retaining the same in predetermined position against movement.

7. An attachment for player pianos and like apparatus for supporting music rolls and the like in connection therewith, said attachment being composed of two elongated and substantially rectangular members, one of which is of greater depth than the other and constituting a shelf member, means for connecting said members Where they abut to permit of the movement of one ofsaid members relatively to the other and for retaining the same in raised and lowered position against movement, and flexible means for aiding in the support of the shelf member in a lowered position. In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my invention I have signed my name in presence of the subscribing witnesses this 14th day of Sept, 1921.

GEORGE F. USBECK. Witnesses:

C. E. MULREANY, H. E. THOMPSON. 

